My son was born in Sweden. Wife was given three options:
1) Give birth floating in a Jacuzzi hot tub.
2) Have saltwater injections on either side of groin. (It was said that the injections were so painful, they offset the pain of childbirth.
3) Inhale nitrous oxide.
They DO NOT do epidurals. There were no other choices available at the hospital. Wife chose the nitrous. She was going to do the Jacuzzi but was warned that newborns occasionally drown that way!
My wife wanted an epidural with our first but the anesthesiologist didn't get to her on time to administer it so she went without.
After that, she had the next three freely without painkillers. By the time our fourth was born, my wife made having kids look easy.
She just popped 'em right out.